PART 3: Learning From Everyone

A). Innovation Breeds Backlash:

Hi again friends! I have been thinking a lot these past days, and I have noticed that starting a project early on has a lot of backlash. Not only is there backlash from strangers and people already successful in the industry of your choice (which is expected), but also people you love and trust the most: friends, family, spouses. I knew that stepping into this business would be full of criticism and harsh conversations. I guess it is safe to say that having tough skin is necessary if you want to start a business, to bring forth a new idea… to innovate even in the slightest way. Conversations that you are not prepared to have and questions you cannot yet answer are embarrassing and make you angry. It is easy to be harsh back with the person out of embarassment, but the best thing I am learning from these moments is to embrace every one of these hard conversations: Prepare for hard questions. Respect hard questions. Grow from hard questions.

B). How I am Learning to Approach People Who Do Not Support My Journey:

In my short time beginning my business, many people have tried to deter me from this new path. Not typically out of spite, but simply human nature. I’ve been told by close friends and family, “but every winery already has an importer, why would they want you?” or “I just don’t think there is a way for you to even communicate your services if you can’t speak fluent Italian”. I was even told by many friends that I have started way too late to be in the wine industry. They have told me forcefully many times that it is near impossible to try to become a part of the wine culture if you weren’t either born into it or started at a very young age.

As many of my friends here are studying for the Masters and PHD’s in physics or mathematics, it’s easy for very logical intellectuals to not believe in a path that isn’t clear and obvious in front of them. I wish sh I could look at the world in such a manner too, but it seems that I was born to make mistakes. There are moments I believe them, but when I use their comments to grow, I am able to change the perspective of what they say and turn it into a positive. It creates new questions and obstacles I need to learn to clear, and if they didn’t say what they had, maybe I wouldn’t be able to take the next step forward.

C). How I am Learning From The People Who Are Joining Me On The Climb:

Sometimes the questions are intentionally to put me back in my place, essentially, but other times I have had friends and even strangers that want to aid me, and they have been the most beautiful and progressive conversations I have ever been a part of. The faces of these people are imprinted in my eyes, if only I could live in those moments forever. When you experience acts of kindness that don’t ask for anything in return, time stops and you truly are astonished by a someone kindness to take the time to be a part of your idea. Many times these types of friends will start with the phrase, “I am just playing devil’s advocate, this may sound harsh but this is what you will face so we should talk about it.” I like THESE conversations. The intentions are stated up front and they are pure, with positive intent. I am here for these conversations. I am here to learn from everyone and everything. It is my job to learn this industry inside and out. I want to know the Americans, know the Italian, know the French, and know the Spanish. It is important to listen, and to figure out how they think and what they want. The better you can understand these people, the better you can serve and work with them for your business. I am here right now in Italy to learn about these people, and if that means hard conversations then I am ready.